University of Virginia Library

CINEMA

'Sunflower': Lost In The Suds

By Steve Wells
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer

Due to one of those quirks of
fate which make life so
interestingly unpredictable,
Vittorio DeSica's "Sunflower" had
simultaneous American premiers
yesterday at New York's Radio
City Music Hall and at our own
University. Theatre here in
Charlottesville.

"Sunflower" purports to be a
tragic love story about a man
(Antonio) and a woman
(Giovanna), whose blazing romance
and marriage are permanently
interrupted when he is sent to the
Russian front of World War II.
When the war ends and he does not
return, she goes to the Ukraine in
search of him, only to find that he
has married the Russian girl who
saved his life. She then rushes home
and tears up every picture of him
she has.

Does that last part sound
slightly familiar to you? Sure. It has
to. How many times have you seen
it in the past? Dozens, probably.
But, okay, so it's a natural reaction;
we can accept one or even a few
scenes that contain cliches
(especially when the subject is love,
for it is difficult to write a scene
about love, blooming or broken,
without one or two slipping in).
But the fact is that "Sunflower" is
a parade of cliches, one after the
other, all beautifully photographed
against picturesque backgrounds, all
played above Henry Mancini music,
all with the ultimate intention of
making you reach for your
handkerchief.

Marcello Mastroanni and Sophia Loren in "Sunflower"

Cesare Zavattini's screenplay is
filled with dialogue which might
have worked thirty, maybe twenty,
years ago. But not today. There is
one segment, however, which plays
quite well. When Giovanna goes to
look for Antonio after the war,
believing against all odds that he is
alive, we can work up some
compassion for her. Questions have
been presented us which we want
answered, thus we are interested in
seeing what comes next. Is he alive?
If he is, will she find him? The
story could have gone any of three
ways. The author's choice was no
cop-out; his treatment of it once he
made the choice was.

But it's DeSica's film and
therefore the responsibility is
primarily his. While his shots of a
soldiers' graveyard, a Russian
winter (reminiscent of "Doctor
Zhivago"), and a field of wild
sunflowers are visually impressive,
his attempts to evoke audience
emotion are, in most cases, quite
feeble. In the good ol' "Love of
Life" tradition, he even has
Antonio's mother appear
occasionally in hopes of pulling our
heartstrings a bit more.

Yet, before the first day of
filming, the potentiality of this
problem should have been evident.
All right, they wanted to film a sad
love story, so where did they set it? Italy, primarily. (After all, what's a
love story without a few Italians?)
Then, who did they choose to play
the leads? Who else but Sophia
Loren and Marcello Mastroanni, to
adequately play the same characters
they have been adequately playing
for years. All the stereotype
elements are there and, unfortunately,
have not been deemphasized
in the least.

Traditionally speaking,
"Sunflower" is very much a
woman's picture. It has an
expensive look about it and its
main characters all mean well, but
are the victims or circumstance.
Perhaps some members of the fairer
sex will be carried away by the
heartbreak the characters must
endure. But all I was carried away
by was the suds.